To investigate if lethal control of an apex predator, the dingo, drive unintended shifts in forest ecosystem structure of mammals and vegetation

Type of Study:

manipulative experiment

Key Results:

Both predation by foxes and depletion of understorey vegetation by macropods were related to small mammal decline at sites where dingoes numbers were lowered by lethal control.

Treatments:

Baiting/lethal control

Response:

Study suggests that apex predators’ suppressive effects on herbivores and mesopredators occur simultaneously and should be considered in tandem in order to appreciate the extent of apex predators’ indirect effects